S-Class (W221) 2007-2013: S 320 CDI, S 350, S 450, S 500, S 550, S 420 CDI, S 600

Just for fun, answer this question

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Old Jan 19, 2008 | 03:30 PM
  #1  
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2007 S600
Just for fun, answer this question

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2008-...QQcmdZViewItem

Price: $514,710
Now just what part of this car does that last $14,710 pay for? The specific pricing on these things crack me up

I know it is the wrong forum but this is my usual hangout and I figured this would get some thoughts stirring. I love looking at exotics from time to time and this thought came to me while looking at this one.

Last edited by trumpet1; Jan 19, 2008 at 05:08 PM.
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Old Jan 19, 2008 | 06:05 PM
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WSH
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2010 CL65
No doubt...always amused by random pricing on these cars....

But part of the silliness is driven by the silliness of many of the buyers....amusing are stories one often hears re: how miserly, yet irrational/emotional, are many of the guys who buy even $100K+ cars....wasting countless hrs over a few dollars of disct; getting cheaper/lower-quality tires than rec'd, etc etc

Have a trading mindset, so am accustomed to quickly placing risk/reward bets w/limited info....so try to "price in" concepts of opportunity cost and rounding error.....

But you may be amazed how many rather wealthy, often very smart, quant-oriented traders and engineers suddenly become inconsistently irrational consumers when negotiating various discretionary purchases.....when ridiculed, will often hear some variant of the "it's not about the money; it's the principle" argument while these guys waste hrs bickering/agonizing over a few pennies or bucks....
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Old Jan 19, 2008 | 06:46 PM
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2007 S600
Originally Posted by WSH
No doubt...always amused by random pricing on these cars....

But part of the silliness is driven by the silliness of many of the buyers....amusing are stories one often hears re: how miserly, yet irrational/emotional, are many of the guys who buy even $100K+ cars....wasting countless hrs over a few dollars of disct; getting cheaper/lower-quality tires than rec'd, etc etc

Have a trading mindset, so am accustomed to quickly placing risk/reward bets w/limited info....so try to "price in" concepts of opportunity cost and rounding error.....

But you may be amazed how many rather wealthy, often very smart, quant-oriented traders and engineers suddenly become inconsistently irrational consumers when negotiating various discretionary purchases.....when ridiculed, will often hear some variant of the "it's not about the money; it's the principle" argument while these guys waste hrs bickering/agonizing over a few pennies or bucks....

Oh my! I know exactly what you are talking about. Usually folks over 55 do this. My mother-in-law dragged out buying an $18000K Honda Element over a 9 month period, shopping over 700 miles in every direction just to say that she got a great deal. She MIGHT have saved $500 on the deal from highest price to what she eventually paid. I bet she spent $1000 on gas looking for "the deal". Sheez!
Now she's too scared to get the damn thing out on the road. Still drives the 25 year old Honda CRX so that she won't get the new car chipped or scraped.
I know this sounds silly but I don't even know what I paid for my car. I know it was somewhere around $140+K. I walked in and said "that is the one I want", got the papers drawn up, signed them, and enjoying the heck out of it.
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Old Jan 19, 2008 | 07:39 PM
  #4  
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WSH
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2010 CL65
Trumpet1, suspect guys like us are in small minority in being casual and time-efficient re: getting toys we want....

Sadly, know lots of rather affluent guys who are <40yo who are amazingly irrational/emotional re: buying cars (and many other luxury items)....

When I order a car, it's always w/my usual salesguy; process is super-quick/seamless; he gives me a fair disct/lease terms/trade-in value; takes great care of me if any svc issues arise (he's my point guy at dealer; makes sure best tech works on my car (even for that 1-3K mi chk), etc etc)....I've always liked to do business w/guys who do great work and treat customers fairly...IMO they deserve a fair profit for their work...

Always funny that many of the most annoying, penny-focused guys tend to have the worst car-buying/ownership expces....and have no positive relationship w/any dealer/salesguy....hmmm....

And the (admittedly rare) really good salesguys tend to have a deep book of repeat customers who enjoy coming back for future cars...and refer pals....Darwinian selection and "it's a small world" in many ways....
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